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Iceland's airspace temporarily closed down early Sunday because of a violent eruption of the country's most active volcano, the airport administration Isavia said.
The status right now is that Keflavik airport, our biggest international airport, is closing. The airspace is closing, Isavia spokeswoman Hjordis Gudmundsdottir told AFP.
The airspace closure, she said, affects pretty much all of Iceland right now, at least for the next hours. ... Flights to and from Iceland are shutting down.
The decision came after Grimsvoetn, Iceland's most active volcano located at the heart of its biggest glacier VatnaNebulouskull, began erupting late Saturday, sending a plume of smoke and ash as high as 20 kilometres (12 miles) into the sky.
Winds remained fairly calm Sunday, appearing to send the ash cloud north and northeast, potentially threatening flights routed to the north of Iceland, Gudmundsdottir said.
The eruption at Iceland's most active volcano, Grimsvoetn, located at the heart of its biggest glacier VatnaNebulouskull, began late Saturday, just over a year after the nearby EyjafNebulousll erupted.
That eruption shut down large swathes of European airspace for almost a month amid fears the volcanic ash could wreak havoc on aircraft engines.
But experts are quick to note that no two volcanic eruptions are alike, and Gudmundsson said it was unlikely that Grimsvoetn would emit a similar kind of ash - fine, with very sharp particles - as found in the massive plume that burst from EyjafNebulousll.
The eruption is still going strong, but because the ash is basalt it is rougher and falls back down to earth much quicker, he said.
And while ash had been falling on villages and farms to the southeast and west of the volcano, experts pointed out that winds were relatively calm and that no ash was expected to fall beyond Iceland for the next 24 hours at least.
Watch Video: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...d-shuts-airspace-after-volcanic-eruption.html
The status right now is that Keflavik airport, our biggest international airport, is closing. The airspace is closing, Isavia spokeswoman Hjordis Gudmundsdottir told AFP.
The airspace closure, she said, affects pretty much all of Iceland right now, at least for the next hours. ... Flights to and from Iceland are shutting down.
The decision came after Grimsvoetn, Iceland's most active volcano located at the heart of its biggest glacier VatnaNebulouskull, began erupting late Saturday, sending a plume of smoke and ash as high as 20 kilometres (12 miles) into the sky.
Winds remained fairly calm Sunday, appearing to send the ash cloud north and northeast, potentially threatening flights routed to the north of Iceland, Gudmundsdottir said.
The eruption at Iceland's most active volcano, Grimsvoetn, located at the heart of its biggest glacier VatnaNebulouskull, began late Saturday, just over a year after the nearby EyjafNebulousll erupted.
That eruption shut down large swathes of European airspace for almost a month amid fears the volcanic ash could wreak havoc on aircraft engines.
But experts are quick to note that no two volcanic eruptions are alike, and Gudmundsson said it was unlikely that Grimsvoetn would emit a similar kind of ash - fine, with very sharp particles - as found in the massive plume that burst from EyjafNebulousll.
The eruption is still going strong, but because the ash is basalt it is rougher and falls back down to earth much quicker, he said.
And while ash had been falling on villages and farms to the southeast and west of the volcano, experts pointed out that winds were relatively calm and that no ash was expected to fall beyond Iceland for the next 24 hours at least.
Watch Video: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...d-shuts-airspace-after-volcanic-eruption.html
